


a coin has two sides

by dryadfiona



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire & Related Fandoms, A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Angst, Character Study, Gen, daenerys is a teenage mentally ill abuse survivor and i'm not letting anyone forget it, doesn't really adhere to canon but is kinda canon compliant anyway, don't read this if you like khal drogo in either the books or the show
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-15
Updated: 2015-12-15
Packaged: 2018-05-06 22:02:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 427
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5432366
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dryadfiona/pseuds/dryadfiona
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Daenerys is not sure where she lies.</p>
            </blockquote>





	a coin has two sides

**Author's Note:**

> requested by my friend jack who doesn't have an ao3

They say a Targaryen goes one of two ways: madness and greatness. Daenerys is not sure where she lies. Mother of dragons she may be, but objectively speaking, her khalasar brings only destruction, sparing none.

The first is Astapor.

The slaveholder is cruel, even  _for_  a slaveholder. He assumes she does not know the language of her House, uses it to comment on the curve of her ass. She is a queen and a mother but she is only a child. She does not think about what this means for her sun and stars, does not question or even remember the relief she felt during her mercy kill. It _was_ a mercy kill.

In Astapor, Daenerys cannot breathe. It may be cleaner than traveling along the Great Grass Sea, and the stench of blood doesn’t bother her after what she’s been through, but the contrast between the people is striking. There are beautiful women in elegant dresses who laugh at some inane joke while behind them a slave is trying not to express any emotion in front of the khaleesi. _They think I am like them_ , she realizes, and her heart breaks.

She needs an army.

She cannot allow this to continue.

When she offers the man a dragon, the greed in his eyes sets off a nearly uncontrollable rage that she has to bite down, drawing blood. Missandei asks if she is alright. She forces a smile and imagines her blood-stained teeth are from killing him herself.

Later, she absent-mindedly thinks of this as waking the dragon. This makes her lie up all night in a cold sweat. _I am not Viserys_ , she tells herself. _I will never be._

The army is hers when he puts the whip in her hand. He is yanking at the chain around Drogon’s neck, and remaining impassive is painful in a way she hasn’t felt since she lost her son.

If she doesn’t do something, she will lose another.

This fuels her rallying cry to the Unsullied, her command to overthrow Astapor, her call to Drogon. Seeing the man burn both horrifies her and fills her with a joy that makes her understand her father’s supposed madness, because what could compare to the thrill of having a dragon kill at your command—

The city is hers.

When she stares down at the whip in her hand, she considers for the briefest second keeping them captive. She would be kind compared to their old masters. _I am not Viserys_ , she tells herself, and frees them, whip cracking under her horse’s steps.

**Author's Note:**

> leeeeet's give it up for unoriginal titles


End file.
